• September 23, 2021

Learning languages ​​for desperately busy people

When I was younger, life was devoted to school and its associated student responsibilities. There weren’t many limitations to deal with, such as work, children, housework, and other adult obligations. As an adult, you still have goals and interests, and speaking a foreign language can be one of them. It takes around 1000 hours of study to be considered fluent in most languages, so with all the time required, how can you realistically speak a new language when your schedule is already full?

A productive way to learn a language and strengthen skills when time is limited is Take advantage of downtime, downtime, travel time, and waiting time.. While traveling or commuting to work, use those minutes to listen to podcasts or music in the language you are studying. If you are at an advanced level, listen to an audio book in that language. Even if you passively listen to music in another language, you are learning new vocabulary and music is a wonderful memory aid. While waiting for an appointment or queuing, use a language learning app on your smartphone or tablet to pass the time. Brief periods of study are small boosters that greatly enhance your memory.

Read 15 minutes every day. If there is a book you like in English, try reading it in your foreign language. You don’t have to read it word for word; Understanding the basic plot and becoming familiar with sentence structures and new vocabulary will have an impact. Also, you will have great satisfaction and confidence after achieving such an impressive goal. Of course, reading a novel is a suggestion. The important thing is to read something, anything that interests you: magazines, comics, romance novels, whatever motivates you to read every day. In fact, reading 15 minutes each day exposes you to over 1,000,000 words each year.

If rereading a book doesn’t interest you, watch a favorite movie in the language you are studying. You will already know the plot so this time you can follow the dialogue with better understanding. Use subtitles if you like. Games and puzzles they are also a productive use of time, and there are unlimited options available on the web. How about participating in a chat room in a foreign language? Not only do they provide a hands-on conversation experience, but they are also a wonderful source for potential foreign friends.

Have you ever tried incorporating the five senses in your language learning? This can be done anywhere. Whenever you taste, smell, touch, hear or see something new or interesting, think about these sensations in your new language. By interacting with your senses, you will train yourself to think more in the new language, not your dominant language. This is why so many language students advance quickly when traveling to foreign countries. They begin to hear and see more foreign words than words in their own language. Over time, their brains stop translating into their own language and begin to think in the new language. When brushing your teeth, for example, talk to yourself (silently or out loud) about the minty taste of toothpaste, how fresh your mouth feels, the color of your toothbrush, how your teeth feel. bristles on your gums, how soft your teeth feel, how foamy the toothpaste becomes, the water and the sound of brushing. Engage your senses in simple tasks while thinking about the language you are learning. Don’t worry about making mistakes. Think in words and sentences and let your mind be free.

To supplement language learning during your busy day, practice these achievable approaches that will keep you on the path to fluency. You can do it! Having an interest in foreign languages ​​is rewarding and opens your world to new possibilities, so don’t let time constraints limit your potential to speak a new language.

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